


Just Semantics

by MarzgaPerez



Category: Hunger Games Series - All Media Types, Hunger Games Trilogy - Suzanne Collins, The Hunger Games (Movies)
Genre: Archery, Awkward Flirting, F/M, Fluff and Humor, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-04-07
Updated: 2018-04-07
Packaged: 2019-04-04 09:29:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14017281
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MarzgaPerez/pseuds/MarzgaPerez
Summary: For the Everlark Fic Exchange - Springtime 2018 on Tumblr. Thanks, @567inpanem!What Katniss said while standing beside Gale: “I never go anywhere without my bow.” What Peeta hears: “I never go anywhere without my beau.” Peeta won’t pursue another guy’s girlfriend, no matter how much he wants her. Will he try moving on? How long before that misunderstanding gets cleared up and Peeta asks out Katniss?





	Just Semantics

He could see her dark braid swinging across her back as she pointed another arrow towards the target. _Bam!_ The arrow thunked into the bullseye. Peeta then noticed a young man with dark hair standing beside her, cheering her on.

_Who’s this clown? I swear I’ve seen him somewhere before._

Peeta walked the edge of the practice field cautiously, passing the other archers and then waving at Katniss as he neared her.

“Hey, Peeta.”

“Hi. Ready to go to the library?”

“Yeah, I’m almost done here. Just give me a sec. I never go anywhere without my bow. Right, Gale?” She winked before kneeling to put her things away.

Peeta kicked his boot into the dirt, trying to mask his disappointment. _Her beau? Dammit. She’d never mentioned a boyfriend before._

Katniss stood up and punched the young man on his arm. “Introduce yourself.”

He laughed and turned towards Peeta. “Like she said, the name’s Gale. I’d like to come along with you two. See my old stomping ground.”

“Sure. Why not? By the way, you look familiar.”

“Yeah, I graduated the year before last. Catnip hasn’t been the same since I left.”

_Catnip? Another weird term of endearment._

They started towards the library. When Gale stopped to tie his shoe, Peeta nudged Katniss. “Won’t your beau get in the way of us studying?”

“Ha! Don’t be ridiculous. I can go a few hours without touching my bow.”

“Right.” Peeta smiled back at her awkwardly. _Yuck is more like it._

Once inside the library, to Peeta’s surprise, Gale wandered off into the stacks and left them alone. They found a table in a nice secluded corner, and Peeta couldn’t help but stare longingly at Katniss as she began scribbling furiously on a piece of paper, conjugating verbs.

Peeta was actually doing just fine in Spanish class, but he had sought her out for tutoring, knowing that she might take pity on him, and it gave him the chance to be with her, sitting close to her, and watching her soft lips move as sultry Spanish phrases rolled off her tongue.

“Peeta? Are you paying attention?”

“Uh, yeah. Sure, um...you mentioned something about future tense?”

“Right. Repeat after me. _Yo iré con mi novia a la fiesta._ ”

“Okay. _Yo iré con mi novia a la fiesta_.”

“Muy bien.”

“But...I don’t have a girlfriend.”

“Oh? Well, maybe you should find one.” Katniss was looking directly into his eyes as she ran her pencil eraser slowly over her mouth.

_Wait, is she flirting with me? No, she wouldn’t do that with her boyfriend nearby._

And right on cue, Gale sauntered over to their table and leaned in to whisper to Katniss. “I’m gonna jet. Now I remember how lame high school is.”

“Fine. But since you’re stopping over at my house, can you please take my things with you? I need to go to the store.”

“Anything for you, Catnip.” Gale pushed a stray wisp of hair behind her ear before grabbing her things. “See you kids later.”

Katniss sighed. “Gosh, I hate to see my bow walk out the door.”

Peeta rolled his eyes. “There’s always tomorrow.”

“More like...later tonight. After we finish up here.”

“Well, in that case, I think we’re almost done.” Peeta didn’t see the point of continuing this charade much longer since he didn’t really need any tutoring nor was Katniss available for him to pursue. He had planned on offering to walk her home, but with this new information, he was ready to call it a day.

“Thanks for your help.” He started to pack up his books.

“Oh. Okay then. Do you want to come with me to the store?”

_Probably buying ingredients to make her boyfriend a romantic meal._

“No, thanks. I think I’ll head over to the bakery, see if my dad needs any help closing up. See ya, Katniss.”

“Okay...bye.”

Did he detect a flicker of sadness in her voice? Maybe she wanted some company since her beau had gone ahead of her.

_Oh well, I’m staying out of the friend zone._

~~~~~~~~~~

A few days later, Peeta was chatting with Johanna on the way to shop class when they passed Katniss in the hallway. He nodded towards her politely, but she barely responded. _Probably day-dreaming about Gale._

When she was out of earshot, Peeta posed a question to Johanna. “Geez, what’s the deal with Katniss and her beau?”

“It’s a love affair for the ages.” Johanna laughed. “Kinda like me and my axe.”

“I guess. Anyway, I can’t compete. I was going to ask her out, but I’m not that kind of guy.”

Johanna stopped and raised her hand mid-air, which Peeta smacked into. “Wait. What kind of guy?”

“You know, the kind of a guy to get between a girl and her beau.”

“I don’t think she’d mind. Everyone can use a break sometime. Even from their passion.”

“So, I’d just be a diversion? No thanks!”

“Suit yourself. But I think she likes you.” Johanna tussled his hair and then skipped into the classroom before he could respond.

~~~~~~~~~~

“Hola, Katniss.”

“Hola, Peeta.”

“¿Cómo está tu beau?”

“¿Mi que?”

“Tu beau.”

“¿Mi... _bow_? Pues, bien. Como siempre.”

Katniss turned around in her desk, seemingly displeased with his choice of topics. It was the first time they’d spoken in over a week. Peeta had mostly been avoiding her, and she must have sensed the distance he was trying to put between them. Katniss ended up picking someone else to partner with during the conversation portion of Spanish class.

_Maybe I’m being a douche. It’s not like she owes me anything. And she’s a really great girl, who I actually enjoy spending time with._

After school let out, Peeta waited for Katniss outside and joined up with her on her walk to practice. “Hey! Are you free later? I could use some more help with Spanish.”

She paused and gave him a suspicious look, her hand on her hip. “Is that so?”

“Well...yeah.”

“Peeta...what do you really want? Señora Lopez told me the other day that you’re one of her best students. You clearly don’t need tutoring, so what is... _this_?”

“Well...I, um...”

“Because I kind of thought you were going to ask me out...” Katniss seemed to immediately regret sharing that information, but now that the cat was out of the bag, she awaited his reply.

“Yeah, I was, until you introduced me to your beau.”

“My bow? Why do you have such a fascination with my bow? Are you jealous?”

“I mean, not jealous exactly. But you’re clearly smitten with him, so why would I-“

“Him? My bow isn’t a person, you know. It may be near and dear to my heart, but-“

“Wait...it? I thought his name was Gale.”

“What does Gale have to do with this? I swear, can’t a girl have a best friend who’s a guy without everyone assuming-“

“But you called him your beau.”

“My what?” All of a sudden, the crinkle on her forehead softened, and Katniss burst into laughter while Peeta remained puzzled.

“What? What’s so funny?”

“I mean, this isn’t the 1950’s, Peeta. If I had a boyfriend, that’s what I would call him...not my beau.”

“Then what beau were you talking about the other day at practice?”

“This one.” Katniss held up her bow case. “You know, for shooting arrows.”

“Oh...yeah...that’s also a...bow.” Peeta wanted to sink into the ground. _I’m a total idiot._

“So...you and Gale are?”

“Friends. We’re just friends.”

He looked at her sheepishly, threading his fingers nervously through the belt loops in his jeans. “And you and me?”

“Well, that depends.” She watched him coyly, appreciating the flustered look on his face and how he was trying to compose himself.

“Depends on what?”

“On whether you’re going to ask me out.”

“Right. Of course.” He cleared his throat. “Um, Katniss, quieres salir conmigo?”

“You see? I knew you didn’t need any help with Spanish.”

”Yeah, I think we covered that. So, what’s your answer?”

”¡Sí!”

His face lit up. “Great! How about Friday night?”

“Sure.”

“I’m really sorry for being such a dolt. Can I walk you to practice?”

“I’d like that.”

“And can I carry your bow?”

“I guess you mean this one, right?”

“Funny. Very funny.” 


End file.
